1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to insect catching devices and more particularly to insect catchers that stop and trap moving insects without screens, smashing, spraying, adhesives, or vacuums.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Whether a person lives in the country, or in the city, insects are a fact of life. There is little that we can do to prevent insects from entering our homes and businesses. Once an insect is spotted, someone must confront the insect, or more will quickly follow. The most common methods of eliminating an insect is to smash it beneath a napkin, or to step on it. Both these methods are messy, and can stain floors, walls, and furniture.
Others have proposed devices which attempt to deal with the presence of insects. It has been consistently found that the devices currently available use one of the following basic methods: smashing devices such as swatters, suction, adhesives, tongs, nets, screens, poisons, or containment chambers.
Most swatters and smashing devices are simple in design, yet make a mess and are reliant on the surface the insect is resting on as one of the smashing surfaces. This makes a mess on the surface if too much force is used. Some are designed with a spongy surface to reduce the chance of making a mess, yet this also reduces their ability to function on larger, stronger insects. There are complex smashing devices that rely on the insect to voluntarily enter or land upon the device which will be used to terminate them.
Suction is yet another common method, performed either with an electric vacuum, or by some manual means of creating a vacuum-like chamber. These devices rely on an accurate approach to capture the insect, and when moving, this task can prove to be difficult to achieve. To have ample vacuum power, the nozzle opening has to be small. If a large opening is to be used, the vacuum power has to be very strong, which creates a large and cumbersome unit. Thus, this method is impractical for dealing with larger insects. In addition, any suction based device requires either a disposal bag, or that the user empty the containment chamber. They further require a complex device with accurate moving parts to create the suction, therefore is more expensive to manufacture and is more likely to malfunction.
Adhesives create a disposal problem--an insect becomes stuck on the adhesive surface and remains there until removed. This method is not very sanitary, and it is not easy to clean the stuck insects completely from the surface. Also, it is not possible to spare the insect, and this method causes the insect to struggle and die slowly.
Tongs and grabbing devices have hard edges, which can easily crush an insect instead of grabbing it. If you miss, you risk the chance of smashing or stabbing the insect, thereby making a mess upon the surface which they are on.
Nets and screens rely on two variables: the insect flying or walking into them, or the user's ability to contain the insect within the net or screen. Containment chambers similarly rely on some means of getting underneath the insect in order to close the lid on them, or by having them fly or walk into the chamber to be captured.
Poisons may be helpful for preventing insect infestation. However, they merely create an additional disposal problem when they are used upon a single wandering insect. In addition, poisons are undesirable to spray on cloth surfaces such as furniture or bedding. Further, poisons are also not suitable for use around children or pets.
None of the above methods solve the problem of capturing or killing insects in a variety of situations. All have a specific use and are limited in their effectiveness if used outside of that particular use. If they are more effective in the process of picking up an insect, such as with a vacuum device, they are more complex and costly, and still limit your options of saving or terminating the insect. The insect will die slowly in the chamber or bag, and still force someone to deal with removing them. To date there has not been a simple, inexpensive, effective way to stop and capture insects, or a device that allows for either instantaneous release or termination of the captured insect.
Thus, while these units may be suitable for the particular purpose employed, or for general use, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention as disclosed hereafter.